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Wow! That was our third Beer Festival this year (we had an
extra
one for the Royal Wedding) and we
think it was one of the best. It was great to see
so many people (many of which we had not seen before), trying the different real ales and ciders/perries. That's what a
festival like this is all about. Even the coolish weather did not deter people and the entertainment (music) proved to be
very popular and that's because, quite simply, it really was first class.
.
We had an amazing 44 real ales (two additions; RCH Old Slug and Pilgrim Gold Spice and one no show in the tent; Ossett Glorious Yorkshire) and 5 ciders/perries (sorry, but the Firey Fox turned up after the festival!).
Judging by the number of beer scoring sheets that were handed in, we suspect you will want to know the result of the Beer of the Festival, so here goes:
| POSITION | BREWERY | BEER | FROM | ABV (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st (14 A's) | Salopian | Kashmir | Shrewsbury, Shropshire | 5.5% |
| 2nd (12 A's) | Thornbridge | Raven | Bakewell, Derbyshire | 6.6% |
| 3rd (10 A's) | Thornbridge | Galaxia | Bakewell, Derbyshire | 5.2% |
| Highly Commended (9 A's) | Windsor & Eton | Conqueror Black IPA | Windsor, Berkshire | 5.2% |
| Highly Commended (9 A's) | Windsor & Eton | Conqueror Black IPA | Windsor, Berkshire | 5.2% |
| Highly Commended (9 A's) | Pictish | Brewers Gold | Rochdale, Gtr. Manchester | 3.8% |
If anyone was fortunate enough to try any (all) of the above real ales, you will no doubt realise just how amazing (hoppy, fruity, dark, yummy!) they all were. These are really great (small) breweries producing absolutely outstanding products; CAMRA would approve.
Anyway, everyone who submitted beer scores was entered into a free prize draw and the winner, drawn out of the hat by Marilyn (the sister of 'Hot Rod' Geoff), was Mary Golding. Congratulations! You win two bottles of wine (or a gallon [8 pints] of finest Surrey Oaks Ale)!
As always we keep the Beer List, Tasting Notes and other posters on the website for prosperity! So if you want to re-live the festival in the comfort of your own home (presumably with a take-out from the Surrey Oaks?) or just want to see what you missed, the click on the images or links below:
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Beer Tasting Notes Surrey Oaks August Bank Holiday Beer Festival August 2011 |
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| Beer Festival - Beer List |
Beer Festival - Beer Tasting Notes |
Beer Festival - FOOD MENU |
Beer Festival Poster (Cleverly designed by Dan Proctor) |
| (Click Image or click here for the better PDF version) |
(Click Link above or here for the PDF version) |
(Click Image) | (Click Image) |
The Entertainment Posters are also included below... You'll have to agree, the music was rather good this year; hopefully there was something in there for everyone! There were even rumours of dancing in the garden... better check the photo's for evidence!
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| Beer Festival - Café Racers (Energy Charged R&B) Played Fri 8pm |
Beer Festival - Fire & Water (Rock Covers) Played Sat 8pm |
Beer Festival - Kymaera Trio (Mellow Jazz) Played Sun 1pm |
Beer Festival - Brute Choir (Excellent Covers Band) Played Sun 8pm |
Beer Festival - The Frog Island Jazz Band Played Mon 1pm |
| (Click Image) | (Click Image) | (Click Image) | (Click Image) | (Click Image) |
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| San poured it (now she'll top it up!) |
Monday Jazz (Busy Garden) |
Monday Garden (It's Busy!) |
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| Friday Night Music - Energy Charged R&B (Café Racers) |
Saturday Night Music - Rock Covers (and mean guitar!) (Fire & Water) |
Sunday Lunchtime Music - Mellow Jazz (Kymaera Trio) |
Sunday Night Music - Excellent Covers (Brute Choir) |
Monday Lunchtime Music - New Orleans Jazz (Frog Island Jazz Band) |
If you've never been to a beer festival at the Surrey Oaks, or are just curious as to what previous beer festivals have been like, just click on the links below:
May (2011), April (2011) for the Royal Wedding, August (2010),May (2010), August (2009), May (2009), August (2008), May (2008), August (2007), May (2007), August (2006), May (2006), August (2005), May (2005), August (2004), May (2004), August (2003).
You should also check our Current Real Ales section, on this website, to see what Real Ales / Ciders and Perries we are currently selling (we update the information at least once a week and as you'll see, it is almost a mini Beer Festival in itself!).
You can also checkout our Twitter page for the latest information about what Real Ales are actually on at the pumps and any other gems of information/fun we may have.
Once again we are indebted to Roy Golding who again spent a lot of his time producing the great Beer List and the Tasting Notes.
There are far more people than you might think, who work tirelessly behind the scenes, just to make sure the beer festival is a success. Some even do it for free, just to say that they 'helped'! Whatever their reasoning, you are all thanked for your efforts, we really do appreciate it. Special thanks also go to Gabi our Chef who prepared the home-made 4oz and 8oz burgers that proved to be such a success as well as all the other excellent food (just look at the food menu above). Thanks also go to the bar and kitchen staff (without you we would not have a beer festival at all).
That brings us to the last and most important person... the happy chappy who held the first August Bank Holiday Beer Festival at the Surrey Oaks 16 years ago (hence the poster). Yep, you've guessed it, it's Cheery Ken! Once again, he's a tad tired, but let's look on the bright side, he's got till May 2012 to recover before it all starts again! So to conclude, raise your glasses and say a big thank you to our great landlord... Thank you Ken!
Last updated: 11th Sep 2011